After spending 30 years in prison, Curtis, now 50, is opening up about his life behind bars. At just 20 years old, he was sentenced to 131 years to life, a punishment that seemed to erase any chance of a future. Today, he shares a story of resilience, driven by the love of his family, especially his son and grandchildren. His journey sheds light on the power of hope and raises tough questions about the justice system.
“I came to jail when I was 20. I’m 50 today,”
Curtis says, his words carrying the weight of three decades lost. Back then, he felt his life was over.
“I thought this was the end of my life, and so I was going to do whatever I could to be as prosperous as I could in here. I didn’t care about authority figures. I didn’t care about nobody, you know, I didn’t care about the next man.”
That mindset defined his early years in prison, a place where hope felt out of reach.
But time brought change. Curtis’s son, who was only two when his father was locked up, is now 32. Along the way, Curtis became a grandfather to three boys.
“My son, when I came in, my son was 2, you see what I’m saying now he’s 32 years old now. I got 3 grandboys, so my whole life has changed now. They give me a different perspective today,”
he explains. This connection to his family flipped a switch in him, giving him a new way to see the world.
Family became his anchor.
“My son, just the way he sees me, the way he acknowledges me, he never has been hard on me for not being there. That in itself has given me motivation,”
Curtis shares. His grandchildren, though, brought something even deeper.
“Now that I see my grandkids, they truly motivate me, you know what I’m saying, because that love right there is something you can never, I never felt that type of love in my life.”
Their unconditional love keeps him going, even after all these years.
Curtis’s story isn’t just about personal growth. It also spotlights the legal system that handed him a 131-year sentence. Such long punishments, often called “de facto life without parole,” spark debate. Are they fair? Do they help people change? Groups like Between The Lines, which interviewed Curtis, push for rehabilitation over endless punishment. They believe in giving people a chance to turn their lives around.
The ripple effects of Curtis’s sentence stretch beyond him. His son grew up without a dad, and his grandchildren only know him through prison walls. Studies, like those from the Sentencing Project, show that super-long sentences don’t always make society safer. Instead, they can break families apart and make rehabilitation harder, especially for communities already hit hard by incarceration.
Still, Curtis proves change is possible. His shift from defiance to hope shows what a person can do, even in tough circumstances. But his 131-year sentence begs the question: Does the system support that kind of growth? Some say it’s about keeping people safe. Others argue it’s too harsh, leaving little room for redemption or second chances.
Ultimately, Curtis’s experience forces us to think hard about justice. The legal system shapes lives, not just for those locked up but for their families too. It can offer a path to accountability and healing or trap people in a cycle of punishment.
Are we using the right approach, or does bias still cloud the way we judge?
Curtis found hope through his son and grandkids, but his story suggests we need a system that doesn’t just lock people away, it helps them find their way back. Only then can we say justice is truly served.
What did he do,?